


when you love somebody but you find someone

by prunuspersicaarchive (prunuspersica)



Series: homesickness [5]
Category: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Genre: Gay Bar, M/M, MacDennis - Freeform, One Night Stands, Regret, charlie's rat stick makes an appearance, gay mac rules! gay rich mac!, mac having one night stands and little dates, mac meeting a bunch of dudes that look like dennis and not noticing, songfic for "post breakup sex" by the vaccines
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-21
Updated: 2017-10-21
Packaged: 2019-01-20 15:02:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12435273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/prunuspersica/pseuds/prunuspersicaarchive
Summary: desc: songfic for post-breakup sex by the vaccines; mac has a couple one-night stands, and doesn't realize they all look like dennis. don't worry, dee, charlie, and frank do.genre: angstwarnings: alcohol, implied smut, internal chaos





	when you love somebody but you find someone

**Author's Note:**

> mac's blocking out some memories huh  
> my tungler is on my profile please send me friendly asks im begging you

 

 

_ I can barely look at you, don’t tell me who you lost it to. _

_ Didn’t we say we had a deal; didn’t I say how bad I feel? _

 

“So, what’s your name,” Mac entreated as the tall, thin man inched his barstool closer, taking a sip of his rum and Coke. 

 

“Oh, my name’s Ian. You?”

 

“I’m Mac. I, uh, just recently came out, I guess, and then went through a  _ bit _ \--” emphasis on the bit, he thought, as the words soured on his tongue, an unmistakable, acrid ghost -- “a bit of a breakup about a month ago. A month and two days. I guess I just want someone to take my mind off it…”

 

God, had it really been that long? 32 days already, and maybe he should still be recovering. Maybe he still is, but what the hell, this guy--Ian, right--was good-looking. Blond hair, a fine face (mind, a bit round for his taste, still cute,) and piercing green eyes. 

 

‘ _ Don’t even think about his goddamn name, Mac. Don’t… Just don’t.’ _

 

“Aw, I’m sorry to hear about that. Maybe he just wasn’t for you,” Ian shrugged, and Mac took a firm sip of his beer and walked away.

 

‘ _ Okay, that was rude. You shouldn’t have done that, and you shouldn’t have done that for Dennis. He’s gone.’ _

 

He’s gone.

 

_ Everyone needs a helping hand; who said I would not understand?  _

_ Someone up the social scale for when you're going off the rails. _

 

‘ _ Take a deep breath, Mac, straighten yourself out-- _ ha, sure,-- _ and find someone else.’ _

 

Mac scanned the room under the coloured lights, feeling slightly sick to his stomach, maybe from the harsh bass of the electro-pop playing, or his mediocre beer, or the gaudy colours and glitter going everywhere. He used to have so much fun here, at the Rainbow. What happened? 

 

‘ _ Fuck, that’s him.’ _

 

He dropped the handful of glitter he’d brushed off another stool and went to pursue him. He wasn’t sure what drew him to the man, probably the eyes. Oddly familiar, but the alcohol was kicking in and he couldn’t bother to calculate where. He slid next to him on the empty, glittery seat. Too much glitter here for his liking. Why were all the gay guys obsessed with glitter? 

 

“Hey, I’m Mac. And you are…?”

 

“Oh, hey. I’m Josh. You look good tonight!” The man, Josh, took a sip of his flowery-looking drink. It didn’t quite match his outfit, a simple black t-shirt tucked into perfectly tailored jeans.

 

_ Have post-break-up sex, that helps you forget your ex. _

_ What did you expect from post-break-up sex? _

 

Josh had light, curly brown hair, swimmingly blue eyes, and a finely chiseled face. Mac didn’t really know what drew them together, but he soon found himself in a tangle of lips and legs and sweat on a futon in Josh’s apartment. They talked, they fucked again, and they fell asleep.

 

\--

 

“Hey, Josh?” Mac mumbled at the sleeping body on the futon. He was in the corner, quickly slipping back into his outfit.

 

“Oh, yeah. Shit, good morning, Mac. That was… Fun.”

 

“You want to come meet my friends? No strings attached, but I think you’re pretty… Hot.”

 

He didn’t know what he was doing, it’s not like he’d ever had a one-night stand with a guy before. He usually left the girls before they woke up, and never even left a note. Not out of lack of respect, but rather he didn’t feel like himself with girls. He didn’t want to have to deal with them, just not his type. And his flings with Dennis were a lot more-- _ stop that thought right there, Mac. _

 

Mac and Josh got dressed together, ate some cereal, and went over to Paddy’s.

 

_ Leave it 'til the guilt consumes, fucking in the nearest room _

_ All our friends were unaware, most had just passed out downstairs. _

 

\--

 

“Hey, guys, this is Josh. I met him at the gay bar… The bar, last night,” Mac explained, gesturing vaguely to Josh at his left.

 

“You guys sleep together or what?” Frank spluttered without hesitation. Josh flushed a bright pink.

 

“Y-yeah, I mean, yeah, we did. It was totally awesome, guys, there was this whole thing where he w--why am I telling you this shit?” Mac proclaimed. Josh stole a quick kiss from Mac and took no extra time walking out of the bar, never to be seen again.

 

_ To think I’d hoped you’d be okay, now I can’t think of what to say. _

_ Maybe I misunderstood, but I can’t believe you’re feeling good... _

 

“Mac, buddy. You did notice that this guy bore an uncanny resemblance to Dennis, right? Like, I could believe that that was my brother. He’s not, but shit, dude,” Dee rambled, hearty yet uncomfortable laughs drowning out the last of her sentence. Charlie grinned over to Mac, perched holding his rat stick on the end stool.

 

“Excuse me, he looked nothing like Dennis. And if you start giving me shit about it, I’ll go out right now and find myself another guy. And he won’t look like Josh. Who doesn’t look like Dennis.”

Deep down, he knew he was wrong. Maybe Josh did really look like Dennis, but he wasn’t having a kind of day where his emotions could afford to deal with it, so he went to the cafe a few blocks away. Who needs Charlie, Dee, and Frank anyway? All Paddy’s did now was give him free alcohol and memories of Dennis. He liked the alcohol, and he, of course, couldn’t stand the stinging memories of Dennis. He was blocking them out completely at this point, pretending he was fine. Sure, it’ll work for a while, he thought. 

 

_ From post-break-up sex, that helps you forget your ex.  _

_ What did you expect, _

_ From post-break-up sex? _

 

\--

 

“Hey, how are you? I’m Mac, oh, and you can say your name too. Sorry, I’m new at this,” Mac nervously chuckled to a tall, thin guy with incredible cheekbones and a gay pride pin on his blue button-up. He had the same hair and eye type as Josh, but Mac didn’t notice, nor did he care. This guy was hot.

 

“Oh hi! You noticed the pride pin? Hmm, well, my name’s Bo, and I’m doing great now that you’ve said hello!” 

 

Mac blushed, and took a sip of his latte that he’d slipped some whiskey into. Nothing is good without alcohol, he’d learned from his 25+ years of substance abuse. Maybe not the best thing to bring up, he thought. And yet again, he found himself in the Rainbow, and then a stranger’s bedroom. Bo was different, gentler, like his sad, drunk nights with Dennis. He, of course, didn’t put two and two together (that Bo looked just like Dennis,) but he thought of Dennis as release came, and as sleep care to take him away again. He pretended he never thought of him at all, and it sort of worked. 

 

_ Post break-up sex that helps you forget your ex, _

_ What did you expect from post break up sex? _

 

That next morning, he sat out on the balcony with Bo, both of them with a cup of coffee and a croissant. Bo was classy and friendly, but neither of them really saw a future, they agreed over their coffee. 

 

“Would you come to the bar that I work at, so I can show my friends that people I like don’t all… look the same?” Mac inquired, mid-conversation. Bo sipped his coffee and shrugged.

 

“Why not.”

 

_ Oh when you love somebody but you find someone, uh huh huh, _

_ And it all unravels and it comes undone, uh huh huh. _

 

\--

 

“So this is Bo, and he’s gorgeous, huh? And  _ not  _ like Dennis.” Mac declared, and Bo instantly made an awkward face as if he regretted what he was getting into. But he stayed, for he had more courtesy and a little more connection with Mac. They held hands, waiting for the gang’s response.

 

Frank snorted.

 

“Mac?” Charlie said, motioning for Mac to come closer. “Buddy, he looks just like the last one.”

 

Dee nodded, sipping her tea that was obviously spiked with some sort of alcohol. 

 

“Fuck you guys then, I’ll be back when I want to,” Mac shouted, extending his middle finger towards Frank as the short man formed an ugly grin, and laughed a little again.

 

He left with Bo, and they went for a nice date at Guigino’s, courtesy of Mac. The whole time, his heart was fluttering, and he mistook it for love. Then he took a bite of his Caesar salad, and realized that it was another memory of Dennis, waiting to be released and enjoyed and freed. The waiter falling in spaghetti, their monthly dinners, when Dennis  _ sang to him, in front of the whole restaurant,  _ God, he was just so ready for him to come back.

  
  


_ Post break-up sex _

_ That helps you forget your ex, _

_ What did you expect from post break up sex? _

 

 

_ Won’t you come back, Dennis?  _ Mac choked down the last of his salad and fish and wine, making bland stabs at conversation with Bo.

 

They never saw each other, or talked, ever again. Goodbye, Bo; and hello to a new wave of Dennis memories. Ones that hurt no less, but differently.

 

‘ _ I’ll be patient.’ _

 

_ Post break-up sex that helps you forget your ex. _

_ What did you expect from post break up sex? _


End file.
